Yharnam’s schemes run too deep

"You've become quite famous around here." Lady Maria was standing in the lumen flower garden, observing the city from above. Karla had gotten back a few hours ago to report. The skinny hunter transformed into a hideous beast in the woods. That event shocked Curtis greatly. Karla on the other hand, reacted quickly and swiftly.

She had already encountered a similar beast. The Cleric Beast that Surgit fought in Central Yharnam was at least three times bigger than the one skinny hunter transformed into. Karla assumed that the small beast would be most vulnerable after it just transformed. Her mental fortitude far exceeded that of Curtis.

Hunters knew they risked transforming into beasts. But none of them expected the skinny hunter to transform into a cleric beast. Their shock slowed them down. They could only watch as Karla slaughtered the Blood Starved Beast before shouting some sense into the two bewildered watchers. Curtis and the burly hunter joined her to fight the newly transformed Cleric Beast and came out on top.

"You killed two Blood Starved Beasts and helped put a fellow hunter to rest. You've done a great deed today." Despite Lady Maria's doubts about Karla, she had to show her some respect. "You can go now, celebrate the victory and report back to me tomorrow. We have to prepare for the upcoming hunt."

A party was waiting for Karla at the hunters' tower beneath the Upper Cathedral Ward. Many hunters could slaughter beasts, but very few of them were capable of defeating two Blood Starved Beasts and help cut down a Cleric. Her deeds earned her great merit which in turn would play a major role in her future assignment.

Karla spent the night partying with other hunters. She didn't partake in blood however, she was still wary of Yharnamites' practices. Many hunters came and exchanged pleasantries with her. She no longer felt like a foreigner among them. She was now welcomed as an official member of the Hunters Order.

In the Upper Cathedral Ward, an important meeting took place between Lady Maria, Gehrman and the leader of the Healing Church Laurence. The hunt was almost upon them, they had too many preparations to finish before dispatching hunters to their respective positions. They had just received a report regarding the fishing hamlet, excitement filled Laurence's voice.

- "The sea shore is a forbidden place for foreigners. No matter how hard we tried in the past months we couldn't get the villagers' trust."

- "What are you inferring Laurence?" Lady Maria asked.

- "The hunt is our best opportunity to get inside the village and get to the sea. Leta wasn't allowed near the place. Despite her best efforts to gain their trust, they still wouldn't allow her near their 'sacred ground'. We can't sit idly by while this curse is exterminating us."

- "Laurence is right," Gehrman's old voice intervened before Lady Maria could utter a word. "We've tried your subtle way, but we can't wait any longer. That village is our last hope. We need to make a move before we are exterminated."

- "Are we sure that it's our only way of preventing the curse from spreading?" Lady Maria didn't want to move in blindly.

The intelligence they received mentioned a Great One living in the sea by the fishing hamlet. The church had even sent some ships for reconnaissance. All the reports indicated that a creature that looked like a great whale roamed about. What aroused Laurence and Gehrman's interest was that the latest report specified that the Great One might bear a child.

- "She might be with child," Laurence told Lady Maria. "This is a chance we must grasp. The Great Ones have all vanished without a trace. This might be the only one we will ever encounter away from those cursed tombs. This encounter will benefit us greatly." Laurence turned to Gehrman. "How about we join the hunt one last time? I have a good feeling about this, our factions will benefit greatly. After this, Cainhurst will live under our shadow."

- "My lady," Gehrman addressed Maria. "The villagers will never yield their sacred ground to us. I'm afraid we'll have to fight for this one. During the hunt, we will use the commotion created by the beastly scourge and enter the village."

- "Those people's only crime is worshipping a Great One." Lady Maria knew of the bloody ways of the Healing Church and the Hunter's Order. She knew what would happen if both Gehrman and Laurence went there. "Let me talk to them. If it comes to fighting, I won't hold you back. I just ask you to give these villagers a chance."

- "Fine, you can use your silver tongue. But I'm not willing to come back here empty handed." Laurence was exasperated. He spent too much time and effort studying the beastly scourge. He wasn't willing to let this golden opportunity go.

- "As you wish." Lady Maria hated conversing with Laurence. He was stubborn and would never back down once he put his mind into something. "Can I be excused now? I have hunters to dispatch for the hunt."

Gehrman sighed and let Lady Maria go. As soon as she left, he turned to look at Laurence. "There is a high chance we can get our hands on an umbilical cord in there." Laurence and Gehrman weren't interested in the Great One by the sea. What made them impatient about the matter was the child she bore.

"Our ritual will definitely succeed this time." Laurence was beside himself with excitement. "A new age is upon us Gehrman. The Healing Church will carve itself a golden name in the annals of history." Gehrman looked at Laurence with a placid face. "Two days from now, we'll meet at the entrance to the village. Don't bring anyone else with you. The villagers won't yield. Lady Maria's soft heart still believes in the goodness in people. I've seen through humanity. The beast inside of us grows hungrier. If we don't put a stop to this, we'll end up like Loran.

"Greatness can only be achieved through blood and sacrifice. Laurence, I hope you're ready for this." Gehrman sighed and looked dejected as he went on. "It won't answer our call. We're left no choice but use drastic measures."

Lady Maria went out to the lumen flower. She would usually come to this place to collect her thoughts. She was by no means a saint. In the Upper Cathedral Ward, she overlooked gruesome experiments on afflicted children. The Healing Church and the Hunters worked together to study the beastly scourge. Human experiments were necessary to find the root of the disease and cure it.

She had too many things to settle before the hunt. The castle grew bolder in the past few months. They had recruited hunters and even created their own faction. The queen rallied her troops to topple the Healing Church. The castle deemed the blood used by the church impure. Their way was the only way to help the queen bear a child of blood.

Lady Maria grew up in the castle. She knew of the old legends related to the queen's origins. Her royal blood could be traced back to the old inhabitants of Yharnam. Only a few select people knew of this. Gehrman knew that but turned a blind eye to what happened in Cainhurst, mainly for his fondness towards Maria.

He took her as his apprentice and trained her in the old arts. Lady Maria was a fierce, deadly hunter. Thanks to Gehrman, she abandoned the use of blood in her attacks and solely relied on her strength and skill to slaughter her way up to the highest echelons of the Healing Church. She was grateful and never questioned his actions twice.

If Gehrman was unsure of his next step, he would heed her advice and back away. But the matter with the fishing hamlet was bigger than that. She knew that encountering a Great One would be their only chance at getting rid of the curse. Great Ones were powerful beings capable of erasing the curse of the Old Blood.

Great Ones were sympathetic in spirit and would often answer when called upon. When dealing with a supernatural being, one could only speculate on their reaction. What seemed to be a helping hand from a Great One could only meant destruction for the human race. Lady Maria had a very bad feeling about this. She didn't want to shed innocent blood to reach the bottomless sea.

She sighed and headed to her study. Thinking about the matter too much gave her a headache. She had other pressing matters to attend to. Gehrman wanted to concentrate fully on eradicating the curse, so he delegated all matters related to hunters to her. 'I need to send someone to fetch that dubious Jack. We can't tackle the hunt without intelligence on the castle's moves. I also need to send hunters to the Forbidden Woods. Byrgenwerth isolated itself from us after Willem considered Laurence a traitor. I've received some worrying reports about the woods."

Lady Maria sighed as she started writing down orders. She had a very long night ahead of her. She was still unsure of Karla's true intentions. She was going to summon her as soon as she finished dispatching hunters to their respective positions. 'The Oto workshop can deal with the woods. Laurence doesn't like them, but as long as they're affiliated to us, they'll participate in "our" hunt.

'I don't care if I have to torture that woman, I need to get answers. Laurence doesn't know what that chair means. Anybody who grew up and had his education in Cainhurst knows of the power of those chairs. I had to feign ignorance. Laurence must not know of this. Karla, I will get my answers out of you, one way or another…'